We put in a little over $2k a year and a half ago.
~5% returns so far.
Probably didn't invest enough to make a difference overall, but I don't really regret it.
white coat investor's website has a nice explanation of his experience.

Got born to good parents. (I give myself all the credit for good taste in choosing them) Worked my arse off in HS and college Left home to go to college Went to cheap state schools for undergrad and med school. Chose a residency and fellowship program that was hard as hell, not cushy. Read Eric Tyso...

I'm pro tipping. Sure, you paid for the job to be done. But, a move is a very personal experience. These people come into your house. Chances are, you're getting to know them a little bit, joking around. And sorta awkwardly telling them what to do and where to put stuff. Usually there's "could you p...

What are the interest rates on the car loan and the student loan debt? I am a concerned by all the people advising to pay off those loans prior to buying a home at a pretty low interest rate--without knowing the rates on the loans he has. If this were credit card debt, different story. (my wife's st...

https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=192782 https://www.bogleheads.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=229597 Couple other threads. Oahu has the big city feel but also has nice resorts in North Shore (lots to do, no bright lights) (see Turtle Bay) Big Island has an active volcano, and an ama...

If visiting Pearl Harbor, you should make reservations ahead of time. My wife and I went to visit in July and I forgot about that. We got to Pearl Harbor shortly after it opened, and the boats to the memorial were already booked until 3:30. I have to laugh at the posters referring to Honolulu as a ...

Netflix's Mindhunter is very good. Well written and acted, and it is taking its time. The interviews with serial killers are extremely well done. Based on a true story of FBI serial killer researchers.

Kauai: Captain Andy's catamaran to the Na Pali coast was one of the most relaxing and beautiful excursions we have ever done. We also did a fun kayak adventure to the Wailua waterfall. Nice and long, good exercise, minimal current. We live on Oahu: Depends on what you like. the North Shore is less t...

Financially speaking, you can't do better than The Room Where it's Happening--a podcast about Hamilton the Musical--finance and Independence, perfect! I also like Paul Merriman. And you can listen to him at 1.5x and he comes through clearly. NPR Planet Money My GoTo pods: Election stuff: 538 Keeping...

IMO, this is clearly market timing based on speculation. And it's a stretch to say that 75% of the population will be disappointed with the outcome. Voter turnout typically ranges from 55-60%. So 40-45% of the people don't even care enough about who the president is to even bother voting! And of th...

As long as you are keeping costs low in your choices, what really matters is being in the market in the first place (and not in a savings account), and how much you are able to invest. If I weren't such a Swedroe 4 factor geek, I'd be in TSM and Total Bond (and probably Total International, because ...

I'm sorry. I respect you so much, Doc, but I don't follow you here. Highlight this year's democratic candidate, hit delete, and insert the candidate in 2008 and you have the same question a hundred million people (ok I exaggerate) asked in 2008. Huh. Turns out 8 years later Wall Street loves them so...

Try Waze on a friend's smartphone for a trip and then see if you still have this hard stance against not owning a smartphone. Waze is great. Diverted us in real-time around accidents and major traffic jams on numerous occasions. No need to get swept up in the points games-iness of it. It's just a r...

Nisiprius According to Wikipedia (m), his senior thesis was entitled “The Economic Role of the Investment Company.” On the other hand… According to Wikipedia (m), his senior thesis was titled “Mutual Funds Can Make No Claims to Superiority over the Market Averages." Who am I to argue with Wiki...

The difference is, when it hits the fan, Total Bond has outperformed everything else do to the amount if Treasury bonds in the fund. This was vital during the financial crisis. If stability is that vital, what's the rationale for not going all the way to 100% Treasury bonds using VG Intermediate Te...

I am not a financial adviser, but always wondered if a good marketing technique and a way to make more than a few hundred bucks for a plan (knowing that setting up a plan one time might be enough for some investors--because Bogleheads tend to keep plans pretty simple)... ...would maybe be to charge ...

If I was vegan, my aim would be to find foods with good protein. They also produce vegan protein powder one could use to supplement the diet. https://www.progressivenutritional.com/products/harmonized-vegan-protein/ has been part of my weekday morning smoothie for a long time. It's not difficult to...

My wife and I were blown away by this Ezra Klein interview with Bruce Friedrich: http://www.vox.com/2016/4/28/11503266/bruce-friedrich-ezra-klein and also this interview with Patrick Brown from Impossible Foods (sorry, the link isn't directly to the intervie--podcast--but it's in the article) http:/...

Yes, but that's an individual TIP. Your question I replied to was about a TIPS fund vs international bond fund. I'm sorry, you're right - I was just beginning to edit my post having thought more about this. Buying a TIPS fund kinda makes my head spin. I believe you lose some precision, some control...

I'm not concerned with my choice of Vanguard for what I really really need it to provide--excellent low cost investment options. No, they aren't going to mess up a conversion. I only feel frustration that I am transferring a large amount of funds. I'm no more important than the little guy, but keepi...

I agree with these suggestions. Colonoscopy infrequently identifies the cause of abd pain that is not associated with other more worrisome symptoms. I would plan on having a screening colonoscopy, with my GI doc knowing that there is a discomfort that has been noted that he or she can keep in back o...

I am in the process of transferring over $550k from a Fidelity 401k to a rollover brokerage IRA, as well as $160k internally from a 403b held at VG to either a rollover IRA or the same brokerage IRA (I got two different answers about whether it would be possible to roll it directly into the brokerag...

Ugh.Lesson learned. I looked up cap gains tax rates for each tax bracket but didn't go far enough. If the market goes down I'll try to whittle away at it. Thx for the heads up. Community bank stock stays put!

I have been contributing to UTMA accounts for the past ~10 years. I chose VO (VG mid-cap index) to be like Mel or be different or whatever. They were in the market, so it's all good. This month I exchanged the VO in both accounts to VOE (VG mid-cap value). This triggered over $11k in long term capit...

Though expensive, I should add that Kahala resort is in a real sweet spot on Oahu. Right by Diamondhead, located on the ocean, just a few minutes from Waikiki but you would never, ever, ever guess it (it's tucked in a pricey residential neighborhood and Diamondhead crater is between it and Waikiki)....

Just moved here in June, so we're newbies. But we have visited 6 times. Have been to Big Island, Oahu obviously, Kauai and Maui. When friends say they are coming to the islands and want to visit one location, I usually think of Maui. We stayed in a villa associated with Grand Wailea. Maui is basical...

trope glad you enjoyed the book The idea of the investment factor is actually pretty simple, firms with high investment underperform those with low investments. Note the worst performing stocks are small cap growth with high investment and low profitability. Those are the "black hole" of ...

I'm not sure this is the kind of "choir" who watches John Oliver. His show/audience I guess would be considered on the left/liberal and probably younger end of the spectrum. But I don't think such an audience is any more financially literate than any other group. I feel like I am in the t...

Let's look at the true current cost of the TIPS "insurance." Total Bond Market sec yield = 1.88% (5.5 year duration) Five year treasury note = 1.23% yield Five year TIPS = -.08% yield If we can accept the premise that the market is thus forecasting 1.31% inflation, the expected real retur...

I think of a TIPS ladder (bought at auction, held to maturity) as the ultimate annuity. Zero expenses. Zero default risk. 100% inflation protected. 100% certainty of future buying power (both amount and timing). 100% transparency. 100% control. 100% flexibility to cash out at any time without penal...

Relative of mine was recently engaged by them, I'm not sure how the connection was made. The initial pitch was basically stock picking to beat the market. Yawn. He was told 1.25% first million, 1.125% thereafter. owwweeeee. I mean maybe if the service included estate planning, but even then, so pric...

What is this obsession that people have with Prime MM? I fully intend on having all my cash in a linked 1% savings account which is far better than either Prime MM or Federal MM. And even then, if you are above $250k and want to have your money in Prime MM, by all means you can keep it there. But w...

I liked it for what it was. I take a liking to boxing movies for some reason. I thought some of the themes were served with a spoon bigger than I needed to understand them, but other than being noticeable, it wasn't a distraction. I won't watch it again, but I'm definitely glad I took the two hours ...

How great is the risk of unexpected inflation today? I believe for the most part we are not hitting the Feds target rates correct? It feels like there are many inflation watchers and Hawks that I am not sure the risk is the same as the 70s and early 80s. Over time a large allocation to TIPS could h...

I hate that negative sign as much as the next guy. That said, the only real difference between the 5 year TIPS and all other low risk FI investments with that duration, is that the negative sign is right in front of us rather than hidden in the nominal return to real-expected-return translation. Wh...

No argument here. The point is short term inflation risk is small. Long term inflation risk is large. Negative rates are only on short term TIPS <7 years. Thus, don't buy short term TIPS with negative rates. Your hedging against the wrong risk. The real risk is long term inflation being above expec...

I've heard that TIPS don't work very well when inflation rates are below 2% (I don't remember WHICH inflation rates), and am worried that we are about to be dragged into Japanese-style deflation for long time. I am sort of timing the market, but inflation/deflation cycles are slow enough that you g...

I just became aware today that VG has 3 large cap value ETFs (and a mega cap value ETF) VTV is the Vanguard Value Index etf that I knew about VOOV is a Vanguard SP500 Value Index etf, and VONV is a Russell 1000 Value Index etf VTV has way more assets under management than the other two (15x the othe...

Reading through this thread, some takeaways include: 1. Many investors don't understand TIPS, leading to moving into and out of the funds for reasons that have nothing to do with the purpose of TIPS in the first place. 2. I don't fully understand TIPS, either. 3. It's not understanding investments t...